All language subtitles for Secrets.Of.Big.Data.S01E04.WEBRip.x264-ION10

♪

Narrator: Hundreds of
millions of dollars disappear

after the owner of Canada's
largest cryptocurrency exchange

allegedly dies under mysterious
cicumstances in India.

Ramona Pringle: There are people
out there that want the body

exhumed so that they can verify
that he's actually dead.

Nikolas Badminton:
Sometimes they simply disappear

once they have people's money.

Narrator: An American woman is
denied prescription mediacation,

because an algorithm determines

that she is a high risk
for addiction.

Kris Alexander: But she claims
she hasn't been abusing opiates.

Mhairi Aitken: It's possible
the A.I. made a mistake.

And if it did, that raises
serious concerns

about its reliability.

Narrator: The President of Gabon
appears in a

video address to the nation,

but some citizens believe

that all may not be as it seems.

Pringle: His face looks
a lot puffier and smoother,

and the distance between
his eyes looks different.

Anthony Morgan: There are
plenty of experts who admit

that President Bongo's
video looks

like it could have
been fabricated.

Narrator: These are the stories
of the future

that big data is bringing
to our doorsteps.

The real world impact of
predictions and surveillance.

The power of artificial
intelligence

and autonomous machines.

For better or for worse,

these are the
Secrets of Big Data.

♪♪

Narrator: On December 8, 2018,

30-year-old Gerald Cotten and

his new bride Jennifer Robertson

check into the opulent

Oberoi Rajvilas resort
in Jaipur, India.

Cotten is the founder of
QuadrigaCX,

Canada's largest
cryptocurrency exchange.

Pringle: QuadrigaCX
is an online platform

where people can trade Bitcoin
and other cryptocurrencies.

Sort of like a stock exchange.

Narrator: Cryptocurrency can be
used to facilitate the sale,

purchase, or trade of goods
between parties,

just like the money
in our pockets.

The difference is that it's
digital and uses encryption

to control the creation of
monetary units

and to verify the transfer and
ownership of funds.

2017 was a banner year
for Bitcoin.

Its value skyrocketed from
around $900 US

to almost $20,000,

and as a result, QuadrigaCX
flourished and Gerald Cotten

became something of a
cryptocurrency tycoon.

Badminton: Quadriga charged a
fee for every trade,

and they handled almost
$2 billion in transactions

from 363,000 accounts a year.

There was a speculative frenzy
and everybody was looking

to pump the market
and make some money.

Narrator: Cotten and Robertson
are in India

to celebrate their honeymoon.

But things take a shocking turn.

Shortly after checking
into the hotel,

Cotten complains of severe
stomach pains.

A hotel employee drives them to
a local hospital,

where doctors initially dismiss
his condition

as traveller's sickness.

However, within 24 hours,

Gerald Cotten is declared dead.

Morgan: Cotten suffered
from Crohn's disease,

but he didn't really
tell anyone about it.

It causes inflammation of the
digestive tract,

which can lead to abdominal
pain, fatigue,

malnutrition, weight loss...

But it is rarely fatal.

Narrator: The official
cause of death is

complications from Crohn's,

but the gastroenterologist who
treated Cotten

later admitted that they were
not sure about the diagnosis.

Regardless of the cause, this
seemingly healthy young man

is now dead and as
the story unfolds,

the fallout from his passing
will have a profound effect

on Quadriga's customers.

Pringle: Cotten took Quadriga's
account passwords to his grave.

Basically, around
$250 million Canadian dollars

from over 75,000
customers vanished.

Narrator: Cotten had
earlier claimed

that he wrote the passwords down
and kept them in a safe

bolted to the rafters
in his attic.

After his death, one of his
employees went to the house

to search for it,
but came up empty.

He also didn't have a so-called
"dead man's switch",

a back-up system that would have
automatically transmitted

the codes to a
prearranged contact,

should Quadriga's
accounts go dormant

for a certain amount of time.

♪

Morgan: At this point, his
customers really start to panic.

Many of them have invested
huge amounts of money

and it looks like it's gone.

♪

Narrator: As the news of
Cotten's death

and the missing passwords
hits the internet,

some of Quadriga's account
holders become suspicious.

Rumours begin to circulate
that Quadriga

was nothing more than
a Ponzi scheme,

an investment fraud that pays
out existing customers

with money acquired
from new investors.

Some even take it
one step further

and suggest something
truly scandalous.

Maybe Gerald Cotten
faked his own death.

♪

Morgan: There is a theory that
this was an elaborate exit scam.

When a perpetrator needs a way
out of paying their investors

by concocting some kind of story
that is beyond their control,

something like our bank
"froze our assets."

So they'll stall and avoid the
issue until investors eventually

just give up and accept that
their money is probably gone.

Badminton: Sometimes
they simply disappear

once they have people's money.

This kind of fraud is
common in the crypto world,

because it's difficult to trace
and to catch the scammers.

Narrator: The difficulty is
due to the anonymous nature

of virtual assets.

Cryptocurrencies are
decentralized, meaning

all transactions are peer to
peer with no authorities,

such as banks or government
institutions involved.

Pringle: Transactions are
recorded on what's called

the blockchain, which is a
public digital ledger.

It's kind of like
a shared spreadsheet

that's accessible to
anyone on the internet

where every transaction
is publicly recorded.

Narrator: With its
humble beginnings,

few people would have predicted
the meteoric rise

in the value of Bitcoin.

This once obscure cryptocurrency

grew out of the dark
corners of the internet

and exploded onto
the investing scene.

And it made some
people very rich.

Gerald Cotten included.

Pringle: Before his death,
Cotten and Robertson

enjoyed the high life.

They owned numerous houses
and rental properties,

a 51-foot yacht and
even a small airplane.

Morgan: The couple also
spent a small fortune

on all kinds of luxuries.

They liked to brag that they'd
been to more than 56 countries.

But there's only
one small problem

with all of their wealth
- it wasn't real.

Narrator: When the price of
Bitcoin tanked in 2018,

many of Quadriga's customers
became alarmed

and wanted to pull
their money out,

but Cotten struggled
to make the payments.

Badminton: Cotten was helping
himself to customers' money

to finance his lifestyle.

Quadriga became his own
personal bank account

and when people started
asking for their money,

he didn't have it.

Narrator: Curious internet
sleuths began looking into

Cotten's background and
discovered that this wasn't

the first time he had duped
unsuspecting investors.

Incredibly, as a teenager,
he launched his first

online pyramid scheme
called S&S Investments,

a venture that promised returns

of up to 150 percent
in just two days.

Cotten ran the scam for three
months before closing up shop

and vanishing with
investors' money.

Pringle: Cotten went on to
perpetrate other scams

before launching Quadriga,
engaging in money laundering,

identity theft and
various other schemes.

Narrator: While it's inarguable
that cryptocurrency

has something of a
shadowy history,

it has developed an almost
cult-like following

among a younger generation of
technophiles.

Many supporters staunchly
believe that digital currencies

could soon become
part of daily life.

Others are doubtful.

Badminton: One of the biggest
problems with cryptocurrencies

in their current state
is price volatility.

There are huge swings in value,
which makes them unusable

on a day-to-day basis as
a method of payment.

Narrator: Critics of
cryptocurrency

also like to point out
that it seems to be

the currency of choice among
tech savvy criminals.

The clandestine nature
of the blockchain,

makes it ideal for
money laundering.

The history of crypto

is littered with tales
of theft and fraud.

The veil of secrecy isn't
always impenetrable,

and sometimes, for people
like Gerald Cotten,

the truth eventually
comes to light.

Pringle: Cotten knew his house
of cards was collapsing

as the price of Bitcoin
plummeted

and he only had two choices,

go to jail or disappear forever.

His death came at a rather
convenient time,

which is why some people think
he might still be alive.

♪

Narrator: Those who believe
Cotten may have faked

his own death cite several
suspicious details

that were revealed
in the aftermath.

First off, there is the matter
of the death certificate -

Cotten's name is misspelled.

This may seem inconsequential,

but the former chairman
of the company

that managed the hospital and
issued the certificate

had recently been found
guilty of fraud.

Morgan: It's no secret
that it's easy to buy

forged and faked
documents in India,

so for somebody who wanted to
fake their own death,

it would be a good
place to do it.

Narrator: But the real red flag
for the conspiracy theorists

is the fact that Cotten
composed a will, only four days

before he and Robertson
left for India,

leaving 12 million dollars
worth of real estate,

along with various other assets,

to his new bride.

♪

The will also made no reference
to any external hard drives,

known as cold wallets, which
contained most of the money

that Quadriga's customers
had invested.

Pringle: It might just be
a coincidence,

but a relatively healthy 30 year
old man with a history of
fraud,

writing a will less than
a week before his death,

definitely seems a bit fishy.

And why no mention of the
supposed millions

stored in the cold wallets?

Narrator: Shortly after
Cotten's reported passing,

blockchain investigators
discovered

that almost all of
the wallets were empty.

Cotten had transferred the funds
into personal accounts

on other cryptocurrency
exchanges

and then squandered most
of them on risky trades.

Morgan: This was
a massive fraud.

Cotten had to know that when
he came back to Canada,

he was going to have
to face the music.

Narrator: Cotten's scam wasn't
particularly sophisticated,

it was really just a modern take

on an old fashioned
Ponzi scheme.

But cryptocurrency is
susceptible

to all kinds of
illegal activity.

Hackers have shown no shortage
of creativity when it comes to

devising new and innovative
ways to steal it.

Badminton: Hackers can break
into mobile data networks

or users' home WiFi,
and then manipulate

or divert crypto trades.

They can also capture login and
password information this way.

Pringle: Online digital wallets
and exchange platforms

similar to Quadriga are also
vulnerable to cyberattacks.

Narrator: Research analysts note
that while crypto-related crime

may be at historic highs,
the growth of lawful use

far outweighs the growth
of criminal activity.

In 2021, illegal trades

represented just 0.15 percent

of the $15.8 trillion dollars

in total crypto transactions.

Badminton: It's not
all doom and gloom.

While the blockchain
is somewhat anonymous,

every transaction
is logged on a ledger

that can be seen by anyone with
an internet connection.

And with the right resources,
authorities can use

this transparency to
stop illegal activity.

Narrator: Crypto detractors
admit that although

it may not work as a currency
for the time being,

the underlying blockchain
technology

does have value in other areas.

Morgan: Businesses are starting
to use the blockchain

to secure their data,
to oversee supply chain

and even to manage
intellectual property.

Narrator: But the primary
function of the blockchain

is still cryptocurrency,

and as long as there is
money to be made,

there will always be characters
like Gerald Cotten

looking to cheat the system.

For her part, Jennifer Robertson

is adamant that her
husband is dead,

and that all of the
speculation is ludicrous.

She claims she brought Cotten's
body back to Canada

and that he was buried five days
after his death in a small,

closed casket ceremony in
Halifax, Nova Scotia.

But still suspicions linger...

Pringle: There are people out
there that want the body exhumed

so that they can verify
that he's actually dead.

Narrator: The FBI and Royal
Canadian Mounted Police

are actively investigating
Cotten's case.

Morgan: Is Cotten still alive?

Well, the jury is still out.

It is pretty tough to fake your
own death and get away with it,

but Cotten does have a
proven track record

of successfully lying to
huge numbers of people.

So...who knows?

Narrator: Investigators were
eventually able to recover

around $46 million dollars

from Quadriga's accounts.

Of the over 75,000
duped customers,

only 17,000 of them made claims,

and they will likely receive

only around 10% of
their money back.

The strange saga of
Gerald Cotten, is a window

into the controversial world
of cryptocurrency.

Will it render traditional
currency obsolete

and become the unified system

for all global
financial transactions?

Crypto evangelists, often with
full-throated zeal,

say it is inevitable that one
day cryptocurrency

will be an integral part of
our everyday lives.

If and when that day comes,
is anyone's guess.

Maybe Gerald Cotten knows.

Wherever he is.

♪

♪ [show theme music]

♪♪

Narrator: For many years,
a 33 year old woman

living in Michigan, USA
has endured

a painful medical condition
called endometriosis,

a disorder of the female
reproductive system,

where abnormal cells begin to
grow outside the uterus.

As a result of this condition,
she has had emergency surgery

to remove life-threatening cysts
on one of her ovaries

and lives in constant pain.

Alexander: In order to
protect her identity,

we will call her Kathryn.
It's not her real name,

but to manage her day-to-day
pain, Kathryn's doctor

had prescribed her different
oral opioids like Percocet.

Fortunately, they seem
to be working.

♪

Narrator: But sometimes,
no amount of medication

can alleviate Kathryn's
suffering.

One day, the pain becomes too
intense for her to bear,

and she checks into
the local hospital.

Doctors immediately begin
monitoring her to see

if she may be developing
another ovarian cyst.

They provide her with
intravenous opioid medication

to help relieve her pain.

But on her fourth day
in the hospital,

something startling happens.

Pringle: Even though she has
the potential to develop

another cyst, which would only
intensify the pain,

a staff member informs her that
she will no longer be receiving

any kind of opioid medication.

Aitken: The reason is that the
medical staff believe

she needs help that is not
'pain-related'.

Narrator: Although 'Kathryn' is
still in serious pain,

she is discharged
from the hospital

with no further explanation.

And only two weeks later, she
gets even more troubling news.

Pringle: She receives a letter
from her gynecologist's office

telling her that they are
dropping her as a patient.

And she is very surprised
to find out why.

Narrator: Her doctor recently
obtained a medical report

from the NarxCare database,

an AI program that uses
algorithms

to help identify a patient's
risk of misusing

or overdosing on drugs.

The A.I. had flagged
Kathryn as "High Risk".

Opioids are potentially very
dangerous medications.

They are derived from the plant
that shares the same name

as the drug: 'Opium'.

When ingested, opioids interact
with specific cell receptors

that mute a person's
pain perception

and then boost feelings
of pleasure.

Alexander: They are relatively
safe, if properly prescribed

and monitored by a physician.

But there are serious
health risks

if opioids are used
incorrectly or abused.

Narrator: Too high of a dose can
slow a person's breathing

and heart rate, which
can lead to death.

And they are very addictive.

Pringle: The problem was born
in the '90s,

with doctors overprescribing
opioids to patients.

But before doctors and the rest
of society realized

how addictive these drugs were,
the damage had been done.

Now it's become a serious
problem all over the world,

but it's at epidemic
levels in the US.

Narrator: In 2019, nearly
50,000 Americans died

from opioid-related overdoses,

more than any other year
on record,

136 people every day.

Over the last 20 years, the
U.S. Department of Justice

has spent millions of dollars
trying to mitigate the problem.

Alexander: They created these
state-level prescription drug

databases called P.D.M.P.

- Prescription Drug
Monitoring Programs.

They collect data on any
controlled substance

that is prescribed to patients.

Narrator: The U.S. government
has also recently contracted

many private companies to mine
this P.D.M.P. data,

some incorporating the
assistance of

machine learning algorithms,
which are meant to indicate

if a patient is potentially
misusing opioids.

Aitken: It tracks the specific
doctors who prescribe

their medications, the
pharmacists handing them out,

the amount of dosages they
receive and if there are any

overlapping days in their
prescriptions.

Pringle: Based on the data,
it calculates and creates

a patient's 'risk score, with 0
being those individuals

who are at the least at risk,

and 999 being those
highest at risk.

Narrator: Many medical experts
assert that these programs

are reliable in accurately
assessing a patient's risk,

and are an essential tool to
help curb the opioid epidemic.

Alexander: It allows doctors and
pharmacists to intervene,

giving them the chance
to stop or reduce

a patient's prescriptions before
they become a problem.

Narrator: In 2021, the U.S.

Center for Disease
Control & Prevention

found that there were
almost 20,000 more

opioid overdose deaths
than the previous year.

Pringle: This is a
significant increase but

many addiction
experts counter that

prescription opioids
are not the true culprit.

That many deaths
are the result of

black-market opioids
like fentanyl.

Aitken: Some argue we should use
every tool at our disposal

to combat opioid addiction.

And that includes these
problematic A.I. programs.

Narrator: But leveraging these
systems might come

at the expense of fair treatment
for prescription users,

who have been taking
opioids for years,

with no reported problems.

The issue lies with how the
technology analyses the data

of patients like Kathryn.

Aitken: It's possible
the A.I. made a mistake.

And if it did, that raises
serious concerns about

it's reliability in such a
high-stakes context

as pain relief and
medical treatment.

Alexander: There is
evidence to suggest

that people with
long-term illnesses

do tend to get flagged
the most, and not because

they're abusing opioids,
but because of the

large amount of data they've
accumulated over their lifetime.

Narrator: But patients' history
isn't the only data

that the system keeps track of.

The PDMP database also keeps
detailed records of physicians,

and if the algorithm suspects

that they may be over
prescribing opioids,

they could be at risk of losing
their medical license.

Pringle: This could incentivize
doctors to not take on patients

suffering from long
term chronic pain,

out of fear that they could
jeopardize their careers.

Narrator: A 2021 survey of
U.S. medical clinics reveals

that roughly 43 percent
are now declining

new patients who
require opioids.

Alexander: This leaves patients
with no other choice

but to keep looking
for a physician.

The problem is, if they are
lucky enough to find one,

their practice may be far away,
possibly out of state.

Narrator: Critics say this may
only exacerbate the problem.

The algorithms know when a
person changes physicians

and can easily ascertain the
distance between their clinic

and the patient's home.
And flag this as a problem.

Aitken: If a patient is
travelling far

to see their physician,

it may look like they are
'Doctor Shopping',

which is when a person
is trying to obtain

multiple prescriptions from as
many doctors as possible.

It's common among people with
substance abuse issues.

Narrator: And there are
further complications

if patients are prescribed
other medications

in concert with opioids.

At one point in time,
Kathryn was suffering

from post-traumatic
stress disorder,

from an unspecified incident,

and was given a prescription
for Benzodiazepine,

a sedative that helps alleviate
anxiety and insomnia.

A report by the U.S. National
Institute on Drug Abuse

found that combining
benzodiazepines with opioids

is extremely dangerous because
both drugs

are strong sedatives and
can affect a person's ability

to breathe - a common cause
of fatal overdoses.

The study also found that when
these drugs are taken together,

a person's chances of dying
are 10 times higher

than those taking only opioids.

Alexander: As it turns out, the
algorithm that assessed Kathryn

does include drugs that treat
post-traumatic stress

as "variables" in how
it determines risk.

Aitken: This shows the A.I. did
what it is designed to do.

It flagged Kathryn as being at a
higher risk of overdose.

Narrator: Many academics believe
that the technology's

good intentions might have
unforeseen consequences.

The algorithms may unfairly
target women because

statistically, they are most
likely to suffer from PTSD.

Pringle: Studies show
that many women endure

significant trauma
on a day-to-day basis.

Whether it be spousal abuse or

in some instances, sexual abuse.

Narrator: In 2021, a U.S. law
professor published a paper

citing evidence that women
who've endured sexual abuse

during their lifetime
are much more likely

to be denied
opioid prescriptions.

With no legal access
to medications

for their psychological
or physical pain,

it's believed many will turn
to the black market.

Alexander: If you can't get your
prescription from your doctor

and pharmacist, you're
left with no choice

than to obtain them
by some other means.

Aitken: And that puts these
women, and anyone else

for that matter, in an even
more vulnerable situation

because once
on the black market,

the quality of the
product can vary.

Meaning they're exposing
themselves to drugs

that may be laced with
other unknown substances.

Narrator: Kathryn still hasn't
found a new doctor,

so she is understandably
concerned about

where she'll be able to get
her medications from,

if her endometriosis
flares up again,

or if any other medical
situation arises.

Pringle: The hospital never
provided her with an explanation

as to why her prescriptions
were discontinued,

so she remains in the dark.

Narrator: Despondent and
desperate for answers,

Kathryn began doing
research online

and stumbled on a
possible reason

for why she may have been
flagged by the system,

she had sick pets.

At the time of her
hospitalisation,

she owned two older rescue dogs

with significant medical issues.

Both had been prescribed
opioids, benzodiazepines,

and barbiturates by
their veterinarians.

Alexander: Prescriptions for
pets are put under

their owner's name. So to the
algorithm it may look like

she is using her
sick dogs as an excuse

to obtain opioid
prescriptions for herself.

Narrator: But A.I. advocates
say that such mistakes

could be remedied by continually
improving the technology,

and streamlining the data so
that the algorithms only use

information that is
relevant to the patient.

Aitken: The problem of opioid
addiction is complex,

and it can't be resolved by
any one single solution.

So technology won't
solve everything.

But if it's designed and
developed responsibly,

there's a role for technology
in addressing

some of these challenges.

Pringle: This situation
needs as much help

and attention as it can get.

Since the beginning
of the COVID pandemic,

overdose deaths in the U.S.
have soared by nearly 30%.

Narrator: And it's
not just there.

Opioid abuse in Canada,
Australia,

and some European countries is
now reaching similar levels

to those seen in the US,

which has prompted the
governments of Belgium,

Finland and the U.K.

to issue new guidelines
for doctors

in prescribing opioid-based
medicines.

Alexander: They too are
exploring the possibility

of using A.I to
address the issue.

Narrator: It remains to be seen
what real impact

technology will have on the
opioid epidemic.

While the intentions are no
doubt in the right place,

the middle ground between
preventing addiction

and providing comfort to those

who legitimately need
medication remains elusive.

♪

♪ [show theme music]

♪♪

Narrator: It's the fall of 2018

and Ali Bongo,
the President of Gabon,

hasn't been seen in public
in several weeks.

Many citizens have become
suspicious of his absence.

Knowing that he had
suffered a stroke,

the public begins to suspect

he might be incapacitated.

But the government assures them
that he will be delivering

his customary New Year's
address.

On Dec 31st, a video of
President Bongo

is released to the public.

Ali Bongo: Hello, compatriots.

The Gabonese people, before
anything else,

allow me to address to you...

Pringle: When people see
this video, it raises

more questions than it answers.

Ali Bongo:
[speaking foreign language]

Narrator:
There is something unusual

about Bongo's appearance.

Morgan: His voice
sounds odd,

and he doesn't really
look like himself.

His facial expressions
are a little unnatural.

Ali Bongo:
[speaking foreign language]

Narrator: Rumours begin to
circulate that his video address

was fabricated by the
Gabonese government,

in order to deceive
its citizens.

Aitken: What's driving the
rumours is the fact that

a few months earlier, the
President was out of the country

receiving medical treatment in
Saudi Arabia and England.

Narrator: There is a
growing suspicion

that he is either very ill,

or even more troubling,
that he is actually dead.

Some are convinced
that the video

is what's called a deepfake.

A form of synthetic media that
uses artificial intelligence

to manipulate images or audio

in order to create
fake events or actions,

often to portray individuals

saying or doing something
they actually didn't.

And they do so with
striking authenticity.

'Deepfakes' roots go back
as far as the 1990s,

when huge advancements were
made in digital media.

Computer programmers
began experimenting

with this new technology,
fabricating images

and superimposing human faces
on other people.

Badminton: One group of
programmers are eventually able

to digitally modify
a person's mouth movements,

so it looks like they are
saying things they never did.

But it wasn't very convincing.

Narrator: In the following
decades,

and with the development of
artificial intelligence,

the technology makes
huge leaps and bounds.

With its help, programmers are
more able to accurately mimic

or fabricate human beings in
the digital environment.

Aitken: The term 'Deepfake'
doesn't really become

part of the popular vocabulary
until 2017,

when a user by that
very same name,

posts a counterfeit video
on a Reddit chain.

Morgan: People are shocked.

It's a pornographic film
where the performer's face

has been swapped with the face
of the actress, Gal Gadot.

Fake Obama:
We're entering an era...

Narrator: The first Deepfake
to garner significant

mainstream attention
is a 2018 video

that features former President
Barack Obama giving a speech

about the dangers of
what's on the internet.

Fake Obama: You see,
I would never say these things.

Badminton:
But it turns out, a filmmaker

had simply swapped
his mouth for Obama's,

making it look and sound

as if the President
was really talking.

Jordan Peele: Moving forward,
we need to be more vigilant

with what we trust
from the internet.

Narrator: The video was
intended as an ironic

Public Service Announcement
for the digital age,

a deepfaked warning
about deepfakes.

And it went viral
after being shared

millions of times across
social media platforms.

According to the
deepfake's creators,

it required 56 hours
of machine learning

to get the simulation right.

The message culminates
with something

Obama would never say.

Fake Obama:
Stay woke bitches!

Narrator: Deepfakes are created
by using algorithms

that analyze various images
and videos of a person

and then use this knowledge
to digitally reconstruct

their body, its movements,
manner of speech

and even the cadence
of their voice.

Aitken: So not surprisingly,
there's a lot of concern

that the technology
is going to be used

for nefarious purposes.
But some people argue

that it can also have
practical applications.

Narrator: Educators say
'Deepfakes' can allow

schoolboards to adopt new
innovative teaching methods

that have the potential to
engage students

on a deeper level.

Pringle: Imagine a video or a
hologram of Abraham Lincoln,

or Albert Einstein speaking
directly to a class.

This will have far more of an
impact than just reading

about them in a textbook or
watching a documentary.

Narrator: But Deepfake
critics fear that

as the technology improves,

so will its overall
accessibility.

Over the past few years,
the amount of

'Deepfake' content has been
growing rapidly.

At the end of 2018,

there were roughly 8,000
deepfake videos posted online,

but just nine months later,

that number grew
to almost 15,000.

Aitken: It's not just companies
related to the tech industry.

There's academics,
industrial researchers,

even amateur enthusiasts
that are now making them.

Tom Cruise Deepfake:
What's up TikTok?

Got a little tip for you.

Call it a TipTok
[laughs]

Narrator: One enterprising
visual effects artist

even went so far as to create a
wildly popular TikTok channel

entirely devoted to deepfake
Tom Cruise videos.

It features an AI-generated
doppelganger

meant to look and
sound like him.

Fake Cruise: It's crazy!

Narrator: But there is
a downside,

as deepfakes continue to
proliferate

and improve in quality,

there is a genuine fear that the
general public may be unable

to distinguish imitation
from reality.

Morgan: Technology like this has
the potential to wreak havoc

on our society if it falls
into the wrong hands.

Narrator: Critics warn that it
may also have dire consequences

if a government uses the
technology

to misinform their people.

And Gabon's citizens suspect
this could be

why their government may have
faked Ali Bongo's video address.

Morgan: According to the
country's constitution,

if a sitting President
is too ill, or unfit to lead,

the opposition party
can call an election.

Pringle: This would give the
government a very good reason

to deceive the public.

Remember, he had had a stroke.

And if he is not well enough
to lead, he can be replaced.

Narrator: What President Bongo's
government doesn't predict

is that the video ends up having
the exact opposite effect,

only adding to people's
suspicions

and increasing instability
in the country.

Barely a week after
the video is released,

a faction within the military
launches a coup,

claiming that the government
has lost its legitimacy.

Aitken:
The coup fails and tensions

within the country
eventually simmer down.

But it does raise
the possibility

that a similar situation,

where a government's legitimacy
is called into question,

could happen really anywhere.

Narrator: In 2019, the US
Intelligence community warned

that Deepfakes were a serious
national security risk,

because adversarial countries
could use them as a weapon

against them and their allies.

Morgan: 'Deepfakes' can be
used to destroy trust in

public and private institutions,
and even individuals.

Narrator: Shortly after
the Russian invasion

of Ukraine in 2022,

a fake video of Ukrainian
president Volodymyr Zelensky

telling his soldiers to
surrender,

was circulated online.

It wasn't very convincing.
Zelensky's head was pixelated

and seemed too big for his body.

and his voice sounded different.

Fake Zelensky:
[speaking Ukrainian]

Narrator: The video was quickly
dismissed as a deepfake,

but it showed the potential
for the spread of

misinformation in a time of war.

As was the case with Zelensky,

when people viewed
the Ali Bongo video,

they couldn't help but
notice his peculiar appearance.

Pringle: His face looks
a lot puffier and smoother,

and the distance between his
eyes looks different.

Aitken: Other things
people claimed were odd

how little he blinks and
that his speech pattern

seems totally different.

[speaking foreign language]

Narrator: And there are
other telltale signs,

unnatural looking colour,
blurring of the face

and technical inconsistencies
within the audio.

Morgan: There are plenty of
'Deepfake' experts

who admit that President
Bongo's video looks

like it could have
been fabricated.

Narrator: But others counter
that the stroke

he suffered months earlier,

may have impacted
his speaking ability,

and that it's possible
he had botox injections,

which caused the
puffiness in his face.

Pringle: They also claim he
had a large amount of make-up

applied to his face...

These explanations
make sense.

So it is possible
the doubters are wrong.

But, once you've sowed
the seeds of doubt,

the damage has been done.

Narrator: Critics warn that
'Deepfake' technology poses

an even greater threat to
other members of society -

Specifically women.

In 2019, it was discovered

that of the 15,000 deepfake
videos posted online,

a staggering 96%
were pornographic.

Morgan: A significant number of
them are female public figures.

Obviously these videos were
made without their consent.

And they're just
the easiest targets.

Really, no one is safe.

Narrator: A cyber-security firm
found that in 2020,

'Deepfakes' were weaponized
against as many as

100,000 different women

as a form of "revenge porn'.

Aitken: It's a real
and horrific issue,

and one which is very
hard to regulate.

Morgan: It's illegal
in some countries,

as well as certain US states.

Aitken: Legislating
against deepfakes is

much more difficult,
and much progress remains

to be achieved on the issue.

Narrator: Some of the tech
industry's most

prominent companies are also
trying to limit

the damage that deepfakes cause.

Google and Facebook are
currently exploring new ways

to flag synthetic content.

One of which involves using

the very same technology
that helps create them.

Badminton: Artificial
Intelligence can be trained

to spot technical
inconsistencies in images,

videos and audio that
have been 'Deepfaked'.

Morgan: Many companies are
also considering adding

a unique digital signature
to images and videos

so that it's easy to track
where they're coming from.

Narrator: But even something
like a digital signature

may not have been enough to
quell the suspicion surrounding

the authenticity of Ali Bongo's
New Year's address.

Pringle: Was it actually fake?

To solve the mystery
once and for all,

in 2020, a cyber-defence firm

runs the New Year's Eve video

through two forensic tests.

To the surprise of many, they
concluded it was likely

not 'Deepfaked'!

Morgan: But even so,
look at the damage

that just the accusation caused

not just public mistrust,
there was an attempted coup!

Narrator: Yet, as 'Deepfake'
technology continues to improve,

as evidenced by the
@deeptomcruise TikTok account,

many experts believe it may
eventually become impossible

for anyone to determine what's
real and what isn't.

Aitken: And this may be
where the true damage lies.

Simply by existing, deepfakes
will call into question

our understanding of what
constitutes proof

that something has
happened, or existed.

Morgan: In the past, videos
and images have been taken

as incontrovertible proof that
something did actually occur.

But now, it's going
to be a lot harder

to tell fact from fiction.

Narrator:
In the best case scenario,

the positive applications of
deepfake technology

will one day emerge
from the shadow

of their destructive
counterparts.

And become a force
for good in the world.

But until then, don't believe
everything you see.

Tom Cruise Deepfake: Just wait
'till what's coming next!

[laughs]

♪ [show theme music]

♪

Narrator: Chinnavenkateswarlu

is a farmer in
Andrha Pradesh, India,

looking for new ways to
increase the size of the crop

on his small, 3 acre-farm.

Alexander: Chinnavenkateswarlu's
family has had this plot of land

for several generations.

On it, he grows several
different types of ground nuts.

Narrator: In early 2016,

he is invited to be part
of a pilot program,

which has been organized
by Microsoft,

and a prominent international
crop research institute,

along with the cooperation
of the Indian government.

Pringle: He is one of 175
farmers within the region

that have been
chosen to participate

in this research project.

Narrator: Its aim is to see
if they can improve India's

agricultural industry by using
artificial intelligence.

Morgan: India is just
one of many countries

that is using AI to optimize
food production.

The projects are still
in their initial phases,

but they are already
showing some promise.

Narrator: The AI's
automated system will send

Chinnavenkateswarlu and the
other farmers text messages

containing important information
on how to improve their crops.

Alexander: It will do this by
providing recommendations

for land preparation,
suggested sowing dates,

managing and testing
soil nutrients

and providing notes on the
application of fertilizers.

Narrator: Researchers for the
pilot project are hopeful

that AI will be able to boost
the farmer's food production

while improving the overall

nutritional quality
of their crops.

With an estimated 2 billion
people across the world

suffering from malnutrition,

and millions more who simply
don't get enough to eat,

programs like this may be able
to make a contribution

to combating the
world's food crisis.

Pringle: The cause of the
global food crisis

is quite varied and complex.

But one of the major
reasons is poverty.

A lot of people are living
on an income

of less than $2 dollars a day,

meaning they can't afford to
feed their families.

Narrator: And there is
substantial evidence

that the food crisis
will only get worse.

Recent studies say that by 2050,

the global population will hit
10 billion.

And the UN predicts
we'll need to produce

up to 70% more food
to meet this increase.

With this in mind, AI is
being used in order to make

cultivation more
efficient and bountiful.

Pringle: Machine learning
algorithms can analyze visual

data of farmer's crops that have
been captured by drones

and provide a report on the
state of the crops

and the viability of the farm.

Morgan: AI can also
use that drone data

to improve the quality
of the soil,

by identifying potential
nutrient deficiencies.

It can also spot insects,
like locusts,

and then warn farmers
to let them know

that their crops are
at risk of being devoured.

Narrator: In Uganda, farmers
have been using this technology

to help identify
different diseases.

Using a simple
smartphone application,

they are able to analyze plants
for possible contamination.

The app can then provide
treatment information

to help mitigate the risk of it
infecting their entire crop.

Alexander: Several tech
companies are also developing

AI robots that can assess the
quality of crops.

And harvest them at a much
faster pace

and at a higher
volume than before.

Narrator: But As AI
becomes more common

in the agriculture industry,

it may have a negative impact

on some of the very people
it's meant to help.

Pringle: Agriculture is a
$3 trillion industry,

that employs over 1.5 billion
people worldwide.

That is 20% of the
world's population.

And it's predicted that over the
next decades this technology

may put millions of
workers out of a job.

Morgan: Robotic equipment is
both faster and cheaper

than human labour,
so many people worry

that once this technology
is introduced,

that there will be huge shocks
in the labour market

as humans are forced
out of work.

Narrator: But there are other
positive effects to consider.

AI's application in agriculture,

may be beneficial to the
environment.

With the help of technology,
farmers might be able

to produce greater yields while
using less land.

Pringle: Less land to cultivate
and harvest means

there will be less
carbon emissions.

Morgan: Every year,
huge numbers of crops are lost

to extreme weather events
as a result of climate change.

Narrator: A 2019 study by the
University of Illinois

found that since the early '80s,

corn yields in the
American midwest

were reduced by as much as 37%,

due to excessive
rainfall and drought.

But AI applications are proving
to be effective in

preparing farmers for the impact
of these adverse conditions.

Alexander: Algorithms are now
able to analyze a region's

weather conditions from
satellite imagery

and compare it
to historical data.

Narrator: Such information will
be especially important

to farmers like those
Chinnavenkateswarlu,

as Andrha Pradesh is
known to experience

unpredictable weather.

Morgan: For the past decade,

as a likely result
of climate change,

it's become more and more
difficult to predict exactly

when monsoon season will happen,

and that has meant poorer
and poorer crop yields.

This AI technology can
analyse weather data

as far back as we have it,

in order to make very
accurate predictions about

exactly when we should be
planting and reaping our crops.

This can go a long way towards
reducing the impact

of monsoons on crop yields.

♪

Narrator: Chinnavenkateswarlu
usually sows his nut crops

in early June,
but before he does,

he receives a text
suggesting he should wait.

So he puts it off
until June 25th.

Pringle: He's hoping this
slight shift in timing

will help increase his harvest.

Narrator: Initiatives like
the one Chinnavenkateswarlu

is participating in are becoming
more and more commonplace.

Globally, investment in
artificial intelligence

in agriculture is predicted to
grow from $1 billion in 2020,

to $4 billion in 2026.

Alexander: Some of this
investment is targeting

what is called AI-driven
indoor vertical farming.

This is when, in order to
maximize land use,

crops are grown upwards,
not as they usually are

on a horizontal, flat field.

Pringle: This approach uses
up to 90% less water

and can produce over 20 times
more food per acre

than the traditional
way of farming.

Narrator: With so many
corporations getting into

AI farming, critics worry what
impact that may have

on farms that don't have the
financial resources

to invest in this new
technology.

Over the past decade,
family-owned farms have been

disappearing in many parts of
the western world,

most of them put out
of business by large,

corporate food producers.

Morgan: Some of these family
farms have been around

for decades,
and now they are gone.

Narrator: Owing to the high
cost of implementation

and integration,
there are concerns

that as AI increasingly becomes
a part of food production,

large corporations will continue
to increase their control

over the world's food resources.

Alexander: If just
a few corporations

dominate food production,
history tells us

that problems like climate
change and poverty

are likely not to be
adequately addressed.

Pringle: For such enormous
issues to be tackled,

we would need a shift not just
in how and what we produce,

but also in how the
profits are distributed.

And that might be
beyond the reach

of artificial intelligence.

Narrator: AI can't do
everything,

but as Chinnavenkateswarlu is
about to find out,

it might be able to improve
crop health and yield.

He harvests his ground
nuts on October 28th,

which is a little
later than usual.

Morgan: He's usually able to
harvest about a ton per hectare,

but this year he's noticed
that its increased

to about 1.35 tonnes
per hectare.

That's a big deal.

Alexander: And even more
significantly,

all the other farmers that were
part of the same project

had an average increase
of 30% in their yield.

So judging by this little
initiative,

it seems that AI can definitely
have some positive impact.

Narrator: What real effect
artificial intelligence

will have in the fight against
world hunger remains unknown.

But one thing is for certain,

in order to feed the world's
growing population,

it's paramount that we transform
our agricultural systems.

And technology might just
be the approach

that puts more food
on the table.

♪